1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is broadly concerned with a conversion device for use with an existing, self-contained meat patty forming device in order to permit adaptation of the device for use with a high capacity food pump, in order to thereby materially increase the output capacity of the patty former. More particularly, it is concerned with such a conversion apparatus which is particularly designed to permit so-called Formax patty forming machines to be modified by attachment thereto of a high capacity food pump such as that commercialized by the Marlen Research Corporation of Overland Park, Kans.; advantageously, the conversion device includes an accumulator chamber operatively coupled via a feedback circuit for controlling the operation of the separate high capacity pump in response to patty forming operations. With the conversion device of the present invention, it is possible to more than double the output of a conventional Formax machine, at a cost far less than the price of a complete new Formax.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many large fast food chains require that their beef patties have certain uniform characteristics such as weight, diameter and density. As a consequence of these rather stringent requirements, it has been found desirable in certain instances to specify that particular brands and models of equipment be used in patty forming operations, because in this way the most uniform patties can be achieved.
One such patty forming device which has achieved rather widespread use is the so-called Formax patty forming machine. Such a machine is described for example in U.S. Pat. No. 3,887,964. Broadly speaking such Formax machines would include an upper meat hopper equipped with a plurality of vertically oriented auger feeders designed to fill a pair of juxtaposed underlying tubular chambers. The latter are each equipped with a shiftable, hydraulically actuated piston designed to force respective charges of meat forwardly towards a patty forming mechanism forming a part of the overall apparatus. Such patty forming mechanism includes a reciprocal slide plate together with plunger means for depositing formed patties on a conveyor belt.
In addition, the Formax machine has an intermediate valving arrangement located between the meat-receiving piston chambers and the slide plate patty forming mechanism. This valving assembly is in the form of an elongated, slotted, axially pivotal tube. In operation, the tube is shifted between positions alternately communicating the individual meat-filled piston chambers and the slide plate forming mechanism. In this way, a continuous supply of meat is delivered to the patty forming mechanism.
While Formax patty forming machines of the type described have achieved a measure of commercial success, the output capacity thereof is inherently limited. That is to say, most present day Formax machines have a maximum capacity of 4,000 pounds of meat per hour, or 80 cycles of the patty forming mechanism per minute, whichever is achieved first. This output capacity is significantly lower than many present day patty forming operations require, and as a consequence processors have been forced to purchase multiple Formax machines in order to meet demand. Obviously, this is a costly proposition.
At the same time, many existing food pumps are known which have a capacity far in excess of the self-contained Formax devices. To give but one example, Marlen Research Corporation of Overland Park, Kans. commercializes a line of dual piston food pumps which can easily achieve an output capacity 7,000 to 8,000 pounds per hour. Furthermore, such existing high capacity food pumps can be purchased at a price far lower than that of a complete self-contained Formax. Therefore, if it were possible to readily adapt an existing Formax machine to a Marlen or other high capacity food pump and thereby double the output of the Formax, the cost advantages would be considerable as compared with the alternative of purchasing another complete Formax machine.